A Job for The Stampede
by TaintedHobbits
Summary: Vash is hired to take a woman captive for a large sum of money. He naturally refuses the job...that is, until he finds out who the girl is. VashMeryl
1. Prologue Thingy

Author's Note:  
Hello, all! Zazie of DOOM here! I have finally decided to write a story, after reading everyone's for the past...oh six months! Anyways...a bit about my story. This is going to be an action/adventure/romance/comedy thingy. Most of it will be light-hearted, so don't get ready for anything too serious BUT this chapter isn't really comedic. It's rather boring, so I won't be expecting many reviews. It's just the set up for the story. I couldn't just jump right into the story without explaining anything!

So...now I'm going to get on with the story! I hope you all enjoy it!

Thoughts will be expressed in 'thoughts'...

And I think that's it! On with the story!

Disclaimer: Trigun belongs to Yasuhiro Nightow, although I wish I owned Vash and Wolfwood And I don't think I'm the only one! Also, the songs that I use belong to their owners. This will be my only disclaimer...I think more than one is pointless, you all know that this disclaimer applies throughout the whole story!

A Job for The Stampede

"Vash The Stampede, I presume?"

A strange man dressed in a red trenchcoat was surrounded by another three men (Also strange looking. Isn't everyone?). Two of them seemed to be the labeled body guards, and the remaining man was beyond any doubt the leader. He was the one who spoke, dressed in all black, with boots matching to the figure they surrounded.

The supposed Vash The Stampede did not reply right away, and Jake, the one dubbed leader, was growing impatient.

'Is this man deaf?' Jake silently questioned himself. He debated whether or not to prod the man with the question for a second time. But before he had time to, the spikey haired man looked up at him.

"I think who I am", he paused, absently put on a half-hearted smile, and swiftly stood up. "Is none of your business". Then, he gave a wink to the three men, and silently pushed past the first two as to head towards the exit.

'Ahhah, trying to escape is he? I know who you are, fool.' Jake thought quietly. He knew this man couldn't get escape the accusation. The description was undeniably accurate; he had that huge ass gun, the red coat, he was a giant in height, and if he weren't Vash The Stampede, why did he leave in such a hurry? So, he processed the man's movements quickly, and took a swift move by limping to the exit to block "Vash's" way.

Jake almost retreated back to his two protectors, for the size difference between the facing men was great. There was at least a half a foot from the top of Jake's head to the man's chin. He knew he was exaggerating, but good golly, he was tall! Alack, he continued to stand his ground and lifted his head up to look the man in the eye.

"Please, sir. I'm not going to turn you in for the bounty. I just have a sort of...job I would wish for you to do." Jake pleaded.

Vash grimaced as he stared upon this small man; pleading for some errand he wanted him to run. 'A waste of time, probably' he thought.

"Who said I had a bounty on my head?" the man questioned, as he cocked his head to the side.

"Now come on, buddy! Don't try and hide it!" Jake slightly leaned in towards the man, and lowered his voice by a few notches as he said, "I know who you are, I'm not stupid, Vash The Stampede."

"You're not as stupid as you seem by the way of your looks" the man in red replied, with a grin plastered against his face. "Let's just say that I know him and leave it at that".

'If he wants to play mind-games, fine! Let him have his fun' Jake silently cursed.

Vash noted the "I'm-really-pissed-off-at-you-because-I'm-in-a- rush" face Jake had obviously worn and snickered. Should he toy around a bit longer, or just give in? Ah, the hell with it, let's be nice for once. "Alright, mister; since you seem so upset, I'll give you a free one this time." The man paused for a second, regained his composure, and continued. "I USED to be called Vash The Stampede by some people...but to everyone now, I'm just Vash. Nothing more, nothing less. Just Vash, please."

"Great! Perfect! I knew I couldn't be wrong!" Jake replied gleefully as he grabbed Vash's hand. "Jake Smith, pleasure meeting you!"

"Likewise..." Vash murmured.

"What was that?"

"Oh, nothing! Just talking to myself." Vash put on a lopsided grin.

Silence settled between the two men as Jake grinned like an idiot, and Vash stood there nervously.

"So..." Vash ventured, after the handshake. "What is this 'job' you mentioned earlier?"

"Ahhh...yes. I was going to get to that!" Jake gave out a hoarse chuckle, only to stop abruptly when he noticed Vash had not thought it was funny. And what kind of impression is it to laugh at your own joke? He needed to get this Vash the Stampede, sorry, _Vash,_ fellow to like him enough to agree to the job. Although, he probably didn't even need to get on his good side; As the rumor goes, he enjoys genocide and the like. How simple this will be.

"I think it was three years ago..." Jake started. "I was at this one bar in December. I was there on a business trip." He suddenly became absorbed in the moment; remembering the stench the bar held, the foggy smoke, clouding the edges of his vision, the foul taste of the mixed alcohols, swimming on his taste buds, and the one thing that caught his attention most. "There weren't too many people in there." He continued "Just me and well, some party of people is all that I can remember, and all that matters, at that. Anyways, it seemed as if they worked together; they were all wearing similar-looking uniforms. It was a couple of guys and a couple of girls. And there was this one girl...I found her beautiful. Maybe it was because I was drunk, but I felt that she was the most beautiful woman that had ever graced this sandy planet. I guess I was really wasted that night. I know the girl couldn't have been that gorgeous, but if my memory depicts me correctly, she wasn't ugly in the least bit. Anyways... as I said before, I was drunk. Really drunk. So I thought maybe this lady'd say yes if I asked her on a date. Bad idea. Instead of discreetly saying 'no' she smashed her glass over my head! I'm lucky I didn't get a shard of glass imbedded in my brain. That damn woman was crazy."

"Did you touch her in any way?" Vash interrupted.

Jake thought a moment. "I'm... not quite sure." he gave a shy grin. Vash gave a sweatdrop.

"Alright, go on"

"So, after I was so brutally abused, I staggered back to my table, and ordered another drink to help drown away the headache that "coincidentally" had surfaced. It wasn't more than an hour later, when I noticed her walking out the door by herself. Naturally, if I weren't drunk, I wouldn't have given my idea any action, but whaddya know, I was plastered out of my mind. So... I followed her out. She obviously noticed me right away. She sprinted down that street real fast. Even through all my drunkenness, I was determined to catch her, and although I tripped a few times, I caught up after a while. Except" He sighed, then continued. "She had these little guns, and she shot up my leg. It must've gotten one of my nerves, 'cause I can't feel this leg anaymore" Jake finished as he gestured towards his leg.

'So THAT'S why he limps' Vash concluded, oh-so-geniusly. But there was a more important matter to think about."So what do you want me to do for you? Go out and kill her?" Vash questioned.

Jake chuckled. 'He sounded upset at the idea of killing. Maybe I do have the wrong man!' He recovered, and opened his mouth to speak. "You could do that. Either that, or bring her back to me. She deserves death because I can't do anything anymore! When I came back from December, I was fired from my job because I couldn't travel anymore. Everything went downhill from there. I became an alcoholic and that led to me being abusive to my family and they all left-"

Vash cut him off the wave of his hand "I'm sorry, Mister, but that's your own fault. I won't do it." Annoyance was clearly edged on his voice.

Jake paused. "Excuse me?" He asked. He must have heard wrong. Yes, that's it - He simply misunderstood.

"I told you, I'm not gonna do it."

"B-but you're Vash The Stampede! You're said to enjoy blood! Why can't you do this one job!" Jake was obviously at a loss.

"Your sources prove you wrong, sir. I hate blood, just the very sight of it makes me sick. As for enjoying it, maybe in another lifetime, but not this one." Vash replied, as he took a step towards the door.

'He's for real! He's actually turning down my offer? Unbelievable!' Jake was stunned, to say the least. He had to get him to take the job! "I'll give you any amount of money! How about $$500,000? That sounds fair!"

"I'm sorry, sir. I won't take the money offer". Vash paused for a second. Something was itching at him, and he didn't know what. And then, out of nowhere he asked a question he didn't mean to voice. "What was the girl's name?"

"Her name? It took a while, but I found out her name's Meryl Stryfe. She works for the Bernardelli Insurance agency in December..."

A flash of recognition shot through Vash's aqua eyes. "Really, Meryl Stryfe?" He asked. 'Do it, do it, do it! If only to go see her, do it!' half of him urged. Oh, to hell with it! "You caught me at a good time" Vash grinned, "I'll do it."

Jake's eyes shot open. "You will! Oh! This is great! How soon can you leave?" Jake's excitement went beyond words. Indeed, everything had gone downhill since he lost his job...

"Tomorrow morning, is that good?"

"Perfect! Just perfect! Oh, and take your time with her! Don't rush at all. The suspense'll be good for her. Stress her out and scare her. Ahhh, this is great, thank you! I'll make sure to have the money for you once you get back! Oh this is wonderful! Thank you!" Jake sputtered out.

"No problem" Vash hastily threw back at him, as he headed out the door, back to his hotel.

'This is all too good' Jake thought, 'But he seems to know this Meryl Stryfe. What in the world could he have against her enough to kill her? Right after he said he hated blood, too. What a strange man'.

Jake watched Vash enter the hotel across the street, and admired his silver colt for the first time.

Oh yes, he would get his revenge. After all, Vash The Stampede was on his side.

Another AN: Okay peeps, edited first chapter, woooo! I made it smoother, made Jake more of a retard... I think. I dunno. I've always thought his idea was stupid, but ah well! I needed him to set up this up so our favorite little couple could get some wonk chika wonk in::cough: I mean happy fun car trip time! . . Hope it flows a bit better, and thanks to all for reading!


	2. Got To Get You Into My Life

AN: Wow! I certainly did not think I would get so many reviews! I would like to thank everyone! Yes, I got so excited that I wrote separate thank- you's to everyone!

Angelstryke- Thank you! I was hoping I captured Vash's character well! I was quite worried about that 

Vashra BloodReeper- Entertain is what I do::juggles and falls down: and I shall keep entertaining!

Angelarms- Thank you for the compliment and the little info about the anonymous review thing! I changed it

Lys3- Thanks a lot! I think if I keep writing stories, I'm gonna have to ignore what a few people say!

Z.A.G.- Thank you! And I did change the anonymous reviews setting. Thanks for telling me!

AngelOfDeath90- Thank you! Yes, I did remember the guns, and I guess I did a little mind game there without knowing it!

Rainydays13- Wow! Thanks a lot! And I'm sure you're a better writer than me! Thanks again!

Flipkat- First of all, I love the username And thank you! Oh, and don't worry- I will finish this story, no matter how long it takes me! ...It seems to be taking me a while, though...

Jaina- Don't worry. But if you had read my first AN, I said that this was going to be a lighthearted fic. I know what you're saying though. Making this serious would make it really stupid! I just have a teensy little spot in this chapter that's a tad bit on the serious side. Not really, though

Asteria- Thank you! I thought my beginning was actually pretty weak! Thank you for the compliment again

Avistone- Thank you! And I wouldn't dream of posting something that was alike to someone else's story! I'm not one to steal ideas At least I hope I'm not...

And I'm sorry that this took me about a month to get out! I was sick at first, therefore being too lazy to write, and I was loaded with schoolwork and what not. Then I told myself to finish it over spring break, but my grandfather died so I've been busy this week, but now I'm typing it up! Sorry again for the wait! But it's a long chapter! I guess that makes up for everything

And the song fits somewhat. Some parts kind of fit...ish...but bear with me! It's not as easy as it sounds! Especially since there are no freaking songs that go with this chapter::rips hair out: You'll just see...it fits in for me somehow in my mentally deranged mind

Okay, funny AN note in the edited-ness: I named this chapter after a Beatles song, and I say right there how it kinda goes with the chapter. Well::silently snickers: A quote from Sir Paul McCartney himself: "I did cocaine for about a year around the time of Sgt. Pepper. Coke and maybe some grass. A song like 'Got to Get You Into My Life', that's about pot. "Day Tripper," that's one about acid. Just about everyone was doing drugs at the time" XD, sorry I found it really funny. Just a little thing to add in here! ;

The first sun peaked over the horizon, as clouds filtered in behind it. The second sun was just beginning to follow, as Vash the Stampede lazily opened an eye.He looked over to the clock, and sighed at the reading of 6:07. He didn't have to wake up until he wanted.

Another sigh.

Oh, the joys of being a free man. He thought this every morning since he had let Knives go. 'Knives...' Vash pondered. He often wondered how his brother had been doing. It had been...almost two years since Knives seemed used to humans enough to live on his own. "It's really a miracle" Vash muttered as he rested his head against his pillow again. It truly was bliss being on his own again.

No Knives.

No bounty hunters. (At least today...)

No Insurance girls...

'Insurance girls...'. Vash's mind had wandered again. He just knew there was something about the insurance girls he had forgotten... 'Waaaaait...insurance girls...short one...job...job'. Job continuously repeated through his mind.

"THE JOB!" he shrieked.

Vash quickly sprang up from the bed, only to clumsily slip on the sheets that had fallen in his frenzy.

"Ow" he mumbled.

And that was how the job started.

After a half an hour of rushed showering, eating, and packing, Vash was heading down the stairs of his hotel, with the key to his room clutched tightly in his hand. The owner of the hotel was standing at the front desk – just as he was when Vash checked in.

"Here you go sir! Thanks for the room" Vash said cheerfully, as he set the bronze key on the plastic counter.

"No; thank you!" replied the owner, cheesily, as he took the key. Vash quirked an eyebrow at the man, as he headed towards the door. Except...the owner called out to him before his hand reached the knob.

"Say" the man's voice cut in, "you wouldn't happen to know a Jake Smith, would you?".

'Jake Smith' Vash thought quickly. 'The one you're doing the job for, dummy!'. "I suppose I do..." Vash replied. Actually, more to himself than to the owner.

"Oh! Good, I caught you! I'm supposed to give you this!" stated the man. He handed Vash a bulky envelope. Vash stared at it. He gave it a small squeeze. It felt like an object with ridged edges...

"Thank you sir, have a nice day!" Vash threw back quickly at the man, He didn't hear the owner's farewell to him, for he was engrossed in the envelope, as a child is engrossed in his presents on Christmas morning. Tiny shreds of paper flew, as Vash worked the envelope open. He poured the contents of the small package out. A letter and ... car keys? He shifted the keys into his right hand, as he unfolded the letter.

Dear Vash,  
I have left with you a car as part of your payment. I hope it makes the process a bit faster. It should be a 5-6 day drive from here to December. And bring the girl back ALIVE. I've decided I would rather deal with her.  
By the way, the car is parked across the street from your hotel. It's black.  
I hope this gets to you.  
-Jake Smith

Vash cursed at himself. 'He wants to kill her now...greeeeeat. You really are a needle noggin! Look at what you get yourself into! You were blinded by a reunion with the short Insurance girl...If she were here, she'd be calling you an idiot and a broom head now.' His mind scolded him. Sometimes, Vash hated to admit how right his mind was.

Vash stopped in front of a black jeep parked across the street from his hotel. This must be the car. He threw his duffle bag into the back seat of the car, and situated himself in the driver's seat.

"Heh...this'll be a piece of cake!" Vash said to himself in a high- pitched voice.

The few passer-bys stared, especially when Vash screamed as he hit the car in front of him.

Five Days Later...!

'Vash The Stampede? When's the last time you heard his name?' a young woman questioned herself. This young woman was none other than Meryl Stryfe. Insurance worker for the Bernardelli Insurance Company in December. Well-known for the time she spent with Vash The Stampede, with her partner Millie Thompson. Praised with a promotion to Supervisor of Claims Investigation after the estimated two years with the humanoid typhoon. No doubt, she is one of the most hard-working, determined, and brave employees in the building.

Some also fail to hear that she's the most-easily-set-off, as some put it, in the building. Our short insurance girl informed quite a few more people, as she screamed while throwing files about, in a spurt of frustration.

"Sempai...are you alright?" A young blond woman questioned her.

"I'm fine, Millie..." Meryl replied.

"Oh! That's great then! I want you to come and meet someone!" the girl cried, cheerfully.

"Meet someone? Can't you see that I'm flooded with three stacks of papers!"

"It'll be one second, Sempai, pleeeeeeease" Millie pleaded.

'Just go' her mind told her.

Sometimes Meryl thought her mind thought the wrong things.

Although, she just thought that her mind thought the wrong things, when thinking that her mind thought the wrong things would therefore be wrong...But that was off subject. Not to mention a tad bit confusing.

"This better be quick, Millie..." Meryl gave in with a gruff voice.

"Yay!" Millie rejoiced, before she continued. "I mean, what kind of first impression would it be to not say hello? Why, it wouldn't be any sort of first impression at all since you would never have said hello, and you wouldn't have a first meeting to impress him by...".

"Millie?"

"Yeah, Sempai?"

"Can I just meet this person and get it over with?"

"Oh yeah, sure!" Millie replied.

She led Meryl through a maze of desks, before they stopped upon one with an abundant amount of clicking sounds ringing against the wood.

"Hello, Mr. Jeff! Remember me? I'm Mille-the one who accidentally dropped the pudding on you!"

The man, Jeff, chuckled at the young girl's antics. "Yes, I remember" he replied, before casting his gaze off to Meryl. "And who might this be?" he questioned.

"Oh! This is my Sempai!" Millie said.

"Meryl Stryfe" Meryl corrected has she made the gesture to shake Jeff's hand.

"Jeff Levan" Jeff said, as he shook Meryl's hand. "...Aren't' you two the ones who were assigned the Vash The Stampede case?" he questioned.

"Yes, me and Millie kept watch over him for a few years".

"God, that's amazing! A few years with the Humanoid Typhoon, and you came out scratch less!" Jeff commented.

Millie then broke out into a fit of laughter. "Mr. Vash would never have hurt us! Why, he looked after us if anything!" she scolded.

"What are you talking about? We nearly got killed from all the trouble he got us into!" Meryl stated.

"But he always saved us. And it wasn't him who nearly killed us. It was bounty hunters...I think."

"The fact of the matter is that man's an idiot, and we risked our lives just being around him. And anyways, it was US looking after HIM."

"But Sempaiiii, Mr. Vash saved us lots of times!"

"Are you two always like this?" Jeff questioned. They ignored him.

"He saved EVERYONE lots of times. Not just US." Meryl said, her voice having risen to the edge of shouting. 'I wish he was here so I could hit him to get some tension out' Meryl devilishly thought.

"He saved us once at least!" Millie argued.

"When in the hell did he do that?"

"Well...with Legato, Sempai." Millie replied, nervously. Meryl had seemed to have forgotten about that...she had actually forgotten a lot.

"If I'm correct, the two of you work over there" The Chief droned behind them, as he pointed his finger to the right.

"Sorry, Chief!" Millie and Meryl nodded simultaneously. They were gone within seconds, leaving Jeff in awe.

"Weird girls..." he muttered.

The bustling streets of December soon were flooded with darkness as night fell upon the large city. It was a foggy night, even, which added to the aura of Vash's situation. 'A perfect night for a kidnap' Vash thought. No doubt he had arrived on the perfect day.

Vash was ready, to say the least. He arrived in December earlier in the afternoon. Immediately, he went to Bernardelli to get the Insurance Girl's address. He wasn't sure if it would go well, but the receptionist pulled out the file after Vash claimed he was an old ex, seeking an accepted apology. Some women.

So now here he was, standing in front of a grey apartment complex. He looked down at a piece of paper held tightly in his hand.

724 East 22nd Street  
East December Apartments  
Room 8B

"Damn her for living in an apartment...it makes this harder!" Vash cursed. He casually strode up to the doors of the entrance to the apartments. To his surprise, it was locked. Then he panicked. "How the hell am I supposed to get her, if I can't get into the damn apartments!" He exclaimed loudly.

He was pacing in front of the doors, when an elderly woman, walking out of the elevator caught his eye. "She's coming outside from the apartments!" Vash, quietly this time, exclaimed. He flattened his body against the side of the building, as the woman walked out the doors, and slipped in when she was fully out the door. Now to head up the stairs.

He had only reached the second floor, when he noticed this was where her apartment was.

'6B, 7A, 7B, 8A...and 8B!' His mind read off. Now, all he had to do was get inside, get the Insurance Girl, take her out to the car, go through with the drive, and pretend she was dead when he got back to Jake.

Alright. No problem.

But now, Vash just needed to focus on getting the Insurance Girl to the car. First, he would try the door. Vash predicted it to be locked, as any other individual would. He reached out for the handle... and it turned. "Unlocked?" He breathed out; shocked.

My, my, it certainly was his lucky day.

He then shut the door behind him, and proceeded into the house. It was...empty. No Insurance Girl anywhere. But it was 10:00...shouldn't she be home by now? But speak of the devil, the front door clicked to announce a certain someone coming home. He panicked ... again.

His mind was sending him signals to hide, and thank God, his body received those signals sooner than they originally would in such a situation. He made a mad dash into a random door as the light clicked on. Meryl Stryfe stepped into her kitchen as she flooded another room with light.

"Home at last" She sighed. 'I just wanna take a bath and go to sleep' She confirmed with herself. She set down her briefcase, and headed towards the bathroom.

Vash noted the footsteps nearing the bathroom he had dived into. He capitalized on them, when he heard them stop in front of the door. He panicked when the door knob

Meryl stepped into her bathroom, and screamed. Vash winced, as he noted that she may have seen him scurry into the cabinet. But she wasn't opening the cabinet ... she left the room instead.

"I can't believe there are mice in here!" Meryl said, whilst she left the room to get a rag. Upon returning, she walked over to the bathtub, and scooped up the mouse with her rag.

Five minutes later, she returned. "Is it too much to ask for a bath and some sleep?" she sighed. Meryl then proceeded to prepare her bath. She turned on the hot water, and set off to the task of undressing. After a minute or so, the bath was full, and she slid into the welcoming hot water. She closed her eyes, and recounted something the receptionist, Joy had said when she left for lunch. Something about an ex-boyfriend coming in for her address. But that couldn't be possible... she hadn't had a boyfriend since... well, since high school. And it had only been three dates. 'No one will ever date you, Meryl' her mind taunted. 'You'll become one of those old maids who lives for their job, and dies an unknown death'.

If only she had known there was a certain pervert, hiding in her cabinet, most certainly enjoying his peep show.

Vash had miraculously managed to stay in his cabinet without being caught. He had also managed to catch a few peeks from his cabinet. He hoped his memory wouldn't fail him on a few certain sights. Vash remained quiet in the bathroom a good half hour before going to check if the Insurance Girl was sleeping. He silently crept down her hallway, to check the three remaining doors of her house.

First door: Closet. No Insurance Girl.

Second door: Empty bedroom. Still no Insurance Girl.

Now the third door. This had to be it.

Vash's hand shakily grasped the cool metal. Just a little turn of the wrist, and the door was opened, exposing a sleeping Meryl, bathed in the moonlight that incessantly flowed in from her window. 'Grab her, and go!' Vash's mind screamed. His adrenaline pumped throughout his body, and with all that excitement, his body obeyed his mind the second time that night during a nerve-wracking moment.

He was out the apartment door in seconds, with a sleeping Insurance Girl cradled in his arms. He hadn't even bothered to shut her door. He was down the flight of stairs in record timing, flying out the apartment door, carefully, and racing to the car. All of this was down elegantly, so as to not wake the girl in his arms. He plopped her down in the backseat, a bit roughly. He gave out a sigh of relief, as he seated himself on the driver's side of the car.

He hadn't screwed up. He hadn't been caught. It really was his lucky day!

He took a second to look back at the girl in the backseat. His mind froze. Everything around him stopped. Nothing else seemed to matter. There were grey orbs staring back at his own set of aqua eyes.

Maybe things were going as well as he thought...

AN: Alright, didn't edit this chapter except for the fact that I actually gave it paragraphs, wow! How amazing is that? Ah well, if the writing sucks, somebody please tell me and I"ll edit it further! Thanks! And finally, on to a very new CHAPTER THREE, spooooky!


	3. Small Prayer

AN: Haha, I return! Because… well, I'm cool like that! What actually got me started on writing this again was a review that I got about a month ago. I was so shocked that somebody was actually reading this! XD, so a thanks to NamelessHeretic. I felt so bad abandoning this story, but I had lost interest. Strangely enough, interest decided to tap me on the shoulder again, and here I am! I wanna thank everyone who has reviewed for this story thus far, it means a lot to have gotten nearly thirty reviews for my first two chapters, so thanks a bunch! I'm so sorry for the EXTREMELY long wait, but here it is and I don't plan on anymore year-long updates XD; Hope you all enjoy!

Her mouth opened as if she was about to scream or yell or… just do something! Before Meryl could even let out a peep, Vash roughly covered her mouth with a calloused hand. 'Why he…!' Meryl angrily thought, emanating many growls.

"I know what you're thinking", Vash soothed, "But I'm going to explain it to you, alright?" Meryl slowly relaxed and Vash felt her tense muscles relax. "Good girl" he praised, jokingly. Meryl bit. Hard. Vash's hand quickly flew away as tears ran down his face. "Geez, Insurance Girl, that really hurt!". She raised her arm as if to hit him and Vash cowered in fright. "I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me!" He begged.

"What right do you have to come in my home, no BREAK INTO, my home, and kidnap me! And why the hell now after five years? What the hell are you thinking you stupid spiky haired idiot! Just - guh! Vash! Listen!" Meryl fumed.

"Sorry, gotta start driving so you don't wake anyone up"

"Vash, stop the damn car right now and tell me what you're doing!". Meryl didn't know whether to strangle him or … god damn it, she just wanted to kill him!

"I'm going to explain everything to you, but only if you promise not to hurt me - or interrupt!" Vash threw in quickly. Meryl made no sound. "I'll take that as a yes?". She gave a sigh of defeat, then a nod. "Good, now please try not to get mad at me, but… Well, I'm kidnapping you." Silence. "Please, Meryl, I told you not to get mad!" Vash joked.

"This is not a time for joking, you needle noggin!"

"Ah, ah, ah, no talk-y!" Vash scorned. Meryl just sat there, fuming and growling. She shot a nasty glare at Vash and he nervously chuckled. "Anyways, five days ago…"

(One explanation later)

Silence.

"You are one of the stupidest men I have met, if not _the_ stupidest."

"Aw, that hurts, Insurance Girl."

"Vash, what the hell were you thinking! Why the hell are you doing this in the first place? Do you really plan to hand me over to some weirdo or what? Arrrgh, how could you be so stupid! I'm feeling it again, y'know? That feeling where you just want to scream until you explode and voila! No more problem! I only get this when I'm around YOU." Meryl complained, rubbing her two fingers circularly around her temples. This man could driver her over the edge, no doubt.

"I just thought it would be nice to see you…" Vash said quietly.

"So we're just gonna go for a little joy ride now? If you just wanted to see me why didn't you -". Her ramblings kept rolling off her tongue, but god! 'He wanted to see me? Why?' Even though she had gotten over the man years ago, the very comment brought a light red tinge to her cheeks. Her silly teenage thoughts were put to the back of her mind when Vash spoke again.

"Because I needed the money!"

"So you're going to hand me over to some freak who wants to kill me because you need money?" Meryl asked bluntly.

"No!" Vash said quickly, "I'm just gonna use my brilliant mind to think up a plan to get you out of there safely, along with a couple of extra dollars.". Truth be told, Vash just wanted an excuse to spend a few days alone with her, but knowing Meryl, she'd probably jump out of the car if he told her that. And besides, he _could_ use some money.

"This is absolutely unbelievable - What am I gonna do about work? Millie's gonna be worried sick, god Vash you're so irrational!" . Meryl ended off her small rant and began banging her head against the dashboard.

"Meryl, stop it! You're gonna hurt yourself, now if you'll please just go along with this, I think it would be a good time to catch up on things! I haven't seen you in five years, you know" Vash said, trying desperately to calm down the feisty woman.

Meryl gave out a sigh. "I guess there's no way out now, is there?" She looked at Vash. The car was silent, then. Meryl decided to ask him a question that had been nagging on her for the past years. "Where'd you go?"

"Hm?" Vash looked over at her. "Oh! Well, I went to Bernardelli and I asked the girl at the front desk and-"

"No, stupid, I mean where'd you go five years ago!" Meryl said, a bit loudly at that. 'He's such a blockhead…'

"Ohhh, well, heh heh." Vash just sat there chuckling. "Well, um, you see, Knives was potentially dangerous and stuff, and I didn't want him hurting you or the big girl or anything so yeah, um. Well, it was for your own good, pleasedon'tbemad!" He replied, shyly, as if he were a little kid, caught with his hand in the… brownie basket? (Trying to spice things up - we can't ALWAYS have a cookie jar, can we?)

"Oh." More silence. "How is Knives?" Meryl dared to ask.

"Oh, he's good!" Vash chirped, "He's out living on his own now, y'know. I don't think he likes the concept of humans a whole lot still, but he improved a lot! I think at one point he was even interested in a girl that lived in the village we lived by" Vash chuckled quietly.

"I'm glad to hear it" Meryl replied genuinely.

"Whoa, are you okay, Insurance Girl?" Vash asked, as if he were amazed.

"What are you talking about, Blondie?" Vash cringed at the name.

"Aw, Meryl, stop calling me names!" Vash whined, tears pouring down his face. Meryl just sighed and looked out into the darkened desert. Despite her constant anger at the poor guy, she felt peaceful and, well, glad that she was there. Even though she had gotten over him, the romantic side of her often would day dream that one day he'd come back again. Of course, in her day dreams she didn't verbally abuse him to no end. Then again, dreams never are a reality. This wouldn't end in a happy ever after, just as fairy tales did. She would get swept off her feet, no doubt, but she was positive her prince would suddenly drop her and run off, just as he did last time. 'No use in dwelling over what will never be' Meryl bitterly told herself. Still, she couldn't help, but wish that he really did want to see her.

Vash took a glance over at Meryl and noticed that she was deep in thought. She seemed calm, surprisingly. Letting his curiosity get the best of him, he spoke up. "Whatcha thinkin' about?" He asked, almost childishly.

"Nothing, why?"

"Just wondering. You seemed deep in thought, is all."

"Oh"

"…yeah" 'Smooth one, Vash!' he scolded himself. Normally he looked like an idiot in front of her, but how did he manage to do it with everything he said or did? But why was he even getting upset? It's not like he cared about what she thought of him. Right? 'Of course, you're just catching up with an old friend. That's it.' Just catching up.

"So what have you been up to as of late?" Meryl questioned, snapping Vash out of his train of thought.

"Searching for the elusive mayfly known as love of course" Vash grinned at her. "And yourself, Insurance Girl?"

"Work. Just plain old work" was Meryl's gruff response.

"Aw, poor Insurance Girl" Vash gave her a pat on the head. He was left with a nasty hand print on his cheek. "Come on, I was joking!" he cried.

"Well stop your joking, it's not funny!" Meryl snapped. She stared down at her lap and then finally noticed something. "I have no clothes." she stated simply.

"Are you really that poor?" Vash questioned, slightly bemused.

"You idiot, I meant right now! I'm in my night gown."

"So?"

"I need actual clothes!" She said. Vash knew exactly what she was getting at.

"No, we cannot go shopping! I don't have money for that!" Vash wailed.

"I'm not sitting in my pajamas for five or six days!"

"We're not going shopping!" Meryl smacked him. "God, you're so meeean" Vash cried.

"First town we see tomorrow?" Vash sat there pouting. Meryl just mustered up the nastiest glare she could.

"Fiiiine." Vash gave in. He never thought he'd live to see the day when Meryl wanted to go _shopping. _She always seemed so… well, she didn't have any clothes. Vash thought for a second and realized he couldn't blame her. After all, he wouldn't wanna be stuck running around in merely a long white button-up shirt. Soon, that clicked enough in his mind and his face grew red. 'Just a t-shirt!' He thought gleefully, trying to keep his composure.

"What's that dopey grin on your face?" Meryl pestered.

"Nothing!" He said guiltily. Meryl just gave a "humph" and continued to look outside. She felt herself growing tired and cupped the side of her face in her palm as her eyes drooped. She soon dozed off, feeling a bit more safe and comfortable than she had in a while, despite the awkward sleeping position.

"Meryl, get up" A far off voice soothed itself into her deep slumber. "Wake up, sleepy heeead" That one got a grumble from the small woman. "MERYL!" a shrill, and she popped up.

"What!" She screamed at the man sitting next to her. At first her surrounding almost made her scream again, but she quickly remembered and relaxed in her seat, gaining back tranquility.

"So you awake!" Vash plastered on a smile. "I found a town". Meryl looked around, and sure enough, people were bustling about around their little jeep.

"Oh." Was her oh-so-intelligent reply.

"Well, come on! It's time to go shopping Insurance Girl!" And with that, Vash snagged her arm and dragged her out into the center of the quaint old town.

"How about this store, Meryl?" Vash asked her. The sign read "Frop and Shop".

"Frop and shop?" she wondered. "That doesn't even make sense…"

"Maybe they have donuts!" Vash said hopefully.

"In a clothes store?"

"…I can dream!" Vash added. Before another word was said, he continued to drag her into the store. It was filled with plain looking cloths, made of solid colored cloths. Few of the items in there had designs. In the back, there was a section with black and navy denim jeans. In the front were mostly shirts, dresses, and skirts for the women. A few other knick knacks were scattered throughout the store, including purses and other accessories.

"Perfect." Meryl commented beside Vash and went immediately to pick out a pair of the jeans in the back. Vash just stood there as she rummaged through the pile, obviously trying to find a size that would fit. She returned to the front of the storoe minutes later, triumphantly holding a lighter colored pair. Meryl quickly flicked threw a few shirts, and proceeded to settle with a dark maroon shirt. 'Only a couple shades darker than Vash's coat. We can match!' she thought sarcastically. She gave herself a roll of the eyes, and went to hand the clothes to Vash.

"What was that? You seemed to be giggling at yourself" Vash asked, amused.

"Hm? Oh, nothing" Meryl replied, blushing that he saw her like that "I was just thinking that the shirt kind of matched your coat. By the way, I'm surprised you still have that thing."

"Well" He started, handing the items to the employee behind the counter, then continued "I actually got rid of it for a while, but once Knives left I dug the old thing back up and voila!" He spun around as if modeling it off to her. Meryl just rolled here eyes.

"Needle noggin." Meryl mumbled.

Vash paid for the clothes, and they walked out of the store. "Donuts!" Vash screeched suddenly and ran to a little bakery across the street. Meryl gave a sigh, and went after him.

"Vash!" Meryl chided as she saw him jumping up and down in front of the poor old woman who more than likely was the owner of the store. "We're in public, settle down!"

"But Meeerrylll, I'm so excited!" he squealed as the woman gave a laugh and started putting the donuts in a bag.

"Excuse me, Miss" Meryl spoke up, and the woman looked over to her. "Do you have any sort of restroom or vacant back room?" She held up the clothes as if to verify her cause.

"Oh, sure dear, there's a bathroom to the left." the woman smiled and pointed towards a door at the left end of the store.

"Thank you" Meryl replied, as she bowed out towards the awaiting room. She changed quickly and folded up her shirt. The jeans were a bit baggy, but nothing too boy-ish, she decided as she tucked her shirt in. After all was done, she walked out to find Vash finishing off the bag of donuts he had just bought.

"Don't you even think of buying anymore, Vash!" Meryl warned as she saw him looking at the fresh donuts longingly.

Vash sniffled and gave her puppy dog eyes "But I'm still hungryyy!" he whined.

Meryl simply rolled her eyes "Whatever, do what you want". Vash jumped up happily as soon as the words came out of her mouth and ran to the counter. Meryl followed and stood next to him. The old woman behind the counter was laughing to herself quietly.

While waiting for Vash's donuts, the old woman decided to pick up some conversation. "So how long have you two been together?" They both just stared at her as if she'd said something vulgar. "Did I say something wrong?" She asked, noticing that she may have struck the wrong chord.

"Together! WITH HIM?" Meryl screamed, baffled. Vash just continued staring as if he were struck by lightning.

"I guess not yet, then?" The woman gave another chuckle and handed Vash the bag. He paid her, still shocked at the woman's comment. "Well, good luck you two!" The woman smiled as the walked out.

"Did she just-" Vash mused. Meryl simply nodded, awestruck still from the comment.

And of course, neither noticed the other blushing as the headed back to the car.

AN: WOOT, FINALLY DONE! Meow, I'm so proud of myself Anyways, I'm hoping on getting the fourth chapter up soon. Sorry if these seem a little short, too! I'll try to make quicker updates since I'm too lazy to write longer chapters XD; Maybe I'll get there soon enough! My goal's about 5,000 words per chap, but I'm at about 2,000 - 3,000 at the moment. Better get working, I guess!

Hope everyone's having/had a wonderful day!


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